One Last Time
by Zsadie Ankof
Summary: They call me Jessica, but that's not me...I'm not sure who me is exactly but I know I didn't grow up with cowboys and spaceships...
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.**

Pain seared throughout her dying frame as she realized this would be her final installment within this world. Everything worth fighting for was gone and there seemed to be no reason left to move but she would be damned if she didn't go out fighting. She would not die a coward's death; it just wasn't in her to do so. This was her happy ending to a very broken fairy tale and she knew it. She also knew she couldn't put off this battle any longer and she would not come out alive. Somehow, she was perfectly at ease with this conclusion and was ready for death to take her one last time.

She rose from the floor just in time to dodge the large hairy daemon charging straight for her. She rolled to the left and fell again. She had blood pouring from the plentiful wounds, which littered, what seemed to be, the entirety of her body. Still, she forced herself to stand as a claw pierced her chest. Looking down at the claw, she knew there was no coming back. There was no one to pull her from her grave. Tears fell down her cheeks as the daemon removed his claw, letting her fall to the floor. This was it. Fleeting thoughts of the gang sped through her until everything went black.


	2. Chpt 1 Migraines and Nose Bleeds

**Migraines and Nose Bleeds**

DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.

"OOOOWWWWWWWIIIIIIIEEEEEE!!!!! Would you stop that?!" I yowl as I bat the doctor's hand away. He was tall with dark whips of hair which fell into his face. His skin was pale and looked like a porcelain doll. And here I thought only women could pull that off. His name tag read Anderson.

"Well, if you would stop moving and let me finish, it would be done by now."

"Well, if _you_ knew what you were actually doing it wouldn't hurt so badly!"

"Stop being a baby. Now shut up and let me do my job"

I calmed enough to permit the man to continue working, glaring at him while he did so, and shoved several strands of blonde hair behind my ear. Wincing, I tried to look around in attempts to get my mind off of the pain.

The room in which we were in, had no windows to speak of and the door was locked firmly in place. By locked, I'm talking five or so bolts which could only be accessed from the other side. Talk about overkill much. The floor was tiled in a simple, boring white, which matched the walls. In fact, it seems to match everything in the room. All I was missing was some pads and a hug-me jacket and I would be home free.

"See, all done. Now, was that so bad?" doctor Anderson asked, tilting his head slightly to the left.

The left… flashes of rolling left… pain… tears…

Shaking my head of the thoughts, I looked up at my 'doctor' and replied "do I have to answer that honestly? Or can I just have a cookie and be on my way?"

Chuckling he shook his head, "Now, Jessica, you know you cannot have any cookies, but lets see about getting you back to your room to rest, okay?"

Stiffening, I just nod in agreement. My name was not Jessica. I wasn't sure what exactly my name was, but it sure as hell wasn't Jessica. It was important he didn't catch my realization; however, I was unsure as to why.

Sliding off of the examining table, I followed the good 'doctor' to the door where a series of clanks and thunks proceeded before the door clicked open.

Talk about being blinded by the light. The walls of they hallway were whiter than the room we had just vacated, if such a thing was possible, and I found myself wishing, nay, praying for darkness to come swoop down on everything and save me from the hurtful rays of light.

Darkness… danger… heart racing… pain… death…

Shaking my head again, I tried to throw the thought to the back of my mind. Something wasn't right here. I wasn't sure what, but something was… off.

Returning to my room, I glance around at the simplicity of it all. A twin sized bed sat up against the far wall with a dull blanket wrapped tightly around it and a simple, rather flat looking, pillow sat atop of it all. Next to the bed was a meager side table which held a small glass of water and then there was a small dresser which held all my clothing necessities which consisted of underwear, pants, and shirts. All of which were identical in color which was, you guessed it: white. Again, there were no windows to speak of and there was no closet, just four walls and a door. This was my home, a hospital of sorts. I wasn't sure why or how, but I was still nursing gashes, bumps, and bruises. They said I had an accident and that I was the only survivor…

More flashes… bodies… anger… pain… magics…

These flashes were giving me a headache and the thing they seemed to have in common was pain. I grasped at the faces, trying to drudge up a name, anything that might give me a clue to whatever it was I was remembering, but right as I had it just within my grasps, pain ripped through my head and I fell to my knees.

God, I was really starting to hate pain.

Something wet dripped from my nose and the red droplet hit the floor like thunder crashing. The red off setting the white tile in such a vibrant contrast and the smell of the blood…

Blood… daemons… slaughter… pain…

A scream belts from me, shaking my entire body, ripping stitches in the process, which, in turn, sent a wave of new pain tearing through me. I clutched my head and screamed until my world went black.


	3. Chpt 2 Remembering

**Remembering**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.**

"Jessica? Jessica, are you ok?"

Voices. Too many voices. All in my head. None will leave. Too crowded. Too much. "Make them stop… please," I manage to whimper, my tongue thick with pain.

"It's going to be ok, Jessica. You're in good hands."

The voices grew louder, drowning out my attempt of a savior's voice in the process. It all just hurt. My body ached and my head was screaming. Blood trickled from my nose and I screamed again. The lights flashed around me and the wind started blowing uncontrollably until I felt a twinge in my neck and everything went black, yet again.

Sun poured down onto my skin, warming me to my core. I was outside sitting beneath a giant oak relaxing while a light breeze passing by me without a care in the world. This was amazing. A small black cat climbed into my lap as if it belonged there and started purring as if her life depended on it. She looked like she was wearing a tux and someone had dropped some vanilla ice cream on the right side of her nose. She was too cute.

"Aren't you the cutest little kitty in the whole wide world? I'm going to take you home and give you bath and feed you and play with you and give bunches of little kitty toys and you'll have bunches of little kitty friends and…" I trailed off as I realized I was babbling to a cat. The babbling seemed to fit though. It was just… me. I dusted myself off and climbed to my feet, kitty in arms, and wandered down the hill. I was heading home.

As I entered my street I started noticing things were looking a little different, but I couldn't place as to how exactly it was different. Nothing seemed to be out of place, yet nothing was in its right place. God I sound crazy.

Crazy… a key… Glory…

Shaking the icky feeling off, I cut across the street and ran up my driveway. Fiddling with the keys one handed, I finally get the door open and stumble into the house and head straight for the kitchen. I immediately warm up some milk in a little saucer and sit it on the counter next to Miss Kitty Fantastico. Don't ask me where the name came from I just know that's what the kitty's name is.

I wander upstairs and beeline for the bathroom intending on an hour long shower with amazingly hot water. I stop in front of the mirror, frozen. That couldn't be me… could it?

Long blonde hair fell down in a soft frame with hazel eyes sticking out. Glasses perched on a long slender nose and I'm wearing the loudest shirt I have ever seen. Man was I an odd duck.

"Don't forget us… We need you…"

Shuddering and telling myself I was hearing things, I kicked off my combat boots, slipped out of the rest of my clothes and climb into the shower. I don't know what it is, but I always seem to get a song stuck in my head and so, of course, I start belting it out.

"No one knows what it's like, to be the bad man, to be the…"

Coffee house… Giles… father…

Blood trickled down my face as I fell…

…only to be woken in my bare room screaming for Giles. Men were rushing around me, screaming to have me sedated. I fought as hard as I could and some men went flying without any provocation. Did I do it? Another twinge in the neck and I was out again.

Okay, I was really getting tire of this whole black out thing going on. I couldn't move and panic raced through me. Men were talking just outside my door, which for once, was open. Shoving the panic down, I strained to hear the words they were uttering.

"She's NOT stable and is too large a liability! We never should have brought her back! How is she remembering any of this?"

"Keep your voice down. I am not sure just yet how it is she can get through the medication; however I assure you I will fix the problem. Besides, she'll probably just throw the memories out as a bad dream. This is an easy fix."

"It had better be. I am paying far too much to let that little witch ruin things now. She must be ready in time."

"She will be. Trust me Mr. Morrison. Now, go on and I will clean up here."

With that, the man, presumably Mr. Morrison, left and Doctor Anderson walked into my line of sight. His face slipped into a mask of concern as my stomach immediately protested, for whatever reason, and I was vomiting.

"Are you all right?" Doctor Anderson asked as he rushed to my side. "Here, let me help you."

I let him hold my hair back and finally, once all had passed, I was laying back down staring at the white ceiling. He offered a cool rag to lie across my forehead and I took it gratefully. I may not trust the man very much right now, but cool rag felt good. My head was spinning and my stomach was aching. Scratch that thought, my entire body hurt.

"Jessica? I want to talk to you about a few things. Is that ok?" he asked.

I simply nod to let him know I was okay with it and so he continued.

"Let's start with Mr. Giles."


	4. Chpt 3 Latin and Things

**Latin and Things**

DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.

Giles… I knew that name… "Is he one of my doctors?" I asked quietly, knowing full and well he was not, but I would be damned if I was going to let what little information I had slip through my fingertips. "Should I go now?"

"Now Jessica, I want you to think and try to remember Mr. Giles for me." Dr. Anderson was now sitting at my side. "It's okay Jessie, I won't let him hurt you again…just tell me what it is that you remember, okay?"

More flashes came then, except these didn't hurt… they felt… what's the word? Natural. That was it. It came so easily I could just pluck the memory up. Mr. Giles was a bad person. Images of him chasing me, attacking me, attacking Buffy… I let out a scream which would wake the dead.

"HE KILLED HER!!!!" panic raced through me.

Dr. Anderson's face scrunched up in confusion, "He killed who Jessica?"

My body hit me with a sudden stillness and it felt as though someone else had taken the drivers seat. My mouth began to move and the voice which came out of me did not sound my own, but then, nothing seemed my own.

"Absentis de ego!"

Dr. Anderson went flying across the room and tried to get right back up.

"Commoror"

His body hit the floor as though a powerful magnet was drawing them together. I didn't understand what was happening but I ran for the door.

"Effringo"

Just like that the door swung open, exposing me to the bright, white light and my bare feet pounded down hall, yet made little to no noise.

"Infusco"

The darkness poured over me like a warm blanket long forgotten and my eyes flared with relief as they adjusted to the new lighting around them. This was good. Now _this_ was normal… wasn't it?

I could no longer tell anything apart. Everything ran together as though it were dye on a damp t-shirt; all of the colors meshing in a blur of random images. Some people enjoy all flashy color but it just gives me a migraine. When would all of this end?

Down the halls I ran, praying to find an exit, skidding to a stop once I found a window. The window let in a light which I have not seen in many weeks, months, hell it may have even been years. Picking up a small wooden chair, I swing as hard as I might, yet the chair only shatters and falls to the ground.

"QUASSO!"

The glass splintered before dropping to the floor. What was that? It doesn't matter, I told myself as I crawled through the hole and out to my salvation.

The dirt gave a welcoming smell and a feeling of familiarity. I took off, my toes curled at the sensation of the grass tickling under my feet as I ran my hardest in the opposite direction of the hospital.

Sorry for taking so long to update and for such a short post. Midterms are kicking my sorry posterior.


	5. Chpt 4 Shiny

**Shiny**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.**

It is amazing how much a child can grow from nothing and how much can actually influence how it is that we grow. A child can grow up in a happy home with amazing family values, Fluffy, the family's adopted puppy, a big house and a great school, then, from out of no where, a single incident can impact the entire psyche of any surviving member, especially a young mind. Everyone has some life altering occurrence which has left them lost and alone, but then there are those times where you find yourself where I find myself now: free.

I have no idea as to my whereabouts or who it is exactly that I am, but I am loving the dirt between my toes. I am liberated and there wasn't a single person left in this universe who could actually stop me. I recognized nothing about my surroundings, but walked on smiling anyways. I was free.

People are starting to stare at me, probably due to my disheveled appearance, and they are muttering to their neighbors in rough English and some other language I could not quite identify. I look down at myself and realize that pants might be a good investment somewhere in the not so distant future and give my dirty blonde hair a tug. I needed to dye it: blonde hair just did me no justice. Looking back up to watch were I am walking, the buildings stop me in my tracks.

These buildings were enormous and stretched up high past the clouds and were as shiny as a new nickel. Paved roads, with what looked to me like spaceships docked on them, went on out of sight. I had to be seeing things, because it I could swear I walked into a futuristic western movie. Heh… what were the odds of that actually being true? I know I couldn't remember anything, but surely I couldn't be that far gone as to hallucinate such a delusion… could I?

My stomach let out a feral growl as a groan emanated from my lips. I was hungry and so now at least I head a direction to head. Point me toward the nearest Mickey D's… assuming there was one… and I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that there is no such thing here. Man! And I really wanted some fries…

Where to eat… where to eat… I could wonder around for hours and still not find a damn thing. This place is unreal. There were giant frilly dresses and shiny objects plastered through out the windows of the shops which lined the streets. Everyone was bustling along, so wrapped up in there own world and never taking a second look in my direction. It was like being home…

"Damn it!" I screamed and again returned to clutching my head as pain tore through it. "make it stop… please" falling to my knees, images of a long walk from the curb, up the middle of the yard, up some short steps to a large covered porch which ran the length of the house… the numbers… 1630… it was so bright as I just sat on the steps… only it wasn't me… the girl had long waves of chestnut hair, not a blonde wisp in sight. The girl looked up and seemed to stare straight through me, mouthing something…

"Miss?! Can you here me?"

My eyes fluttered as I started to stir back to reality… or maybe back to my dream world… I am unsure which to call it; although, the other seemed more familiar.

"Yes, I can here you yelling. Jeez-…" my eyes widen as I stared into the eyes of an evil man. "Absentis de EGO!"

The man I knew as Caleb, went flying across the street as I scrambled to my feet and ran once again for my freedom. I would rather go back then end up with that sick priest… I slow down about a mile down the road and around a few corners and realized the man did not carry himself as the priest had… but then again evil does disguise itself in the presence of, well, everyone if it so feels.

"DAMN IT!" How is it that I have the capability to remember his name yet not my own? That is soo my luck. I can never catch a break, or maybe I can. This had to be my lucky day. I would know that loud shirt anywhere… who it belonged to, on the other hand, not so sure, but I know that shirt… shiny…


	6. Chpt 5 Thieving

**Thieving**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.**

I made my way towards the man who was wearing the loud shirt, ignoring the shouts for bargains as I went. He had disappeared behind that last tent… or so I had thought. I stood there in middle of the street, probably looking like an escape psych patient, and blindly looked for man some strange man I didn't know.

Wrapping my arms around myself, I realized I probably did look as though I was an escaped psych patient and decided it might be best if I found some new clothing. I began searching through market for any article of clothing which might fit, forgetting I had neither cash nor the knowledge of the currency which was used here. I wondered into a small tent where an older man stood arguing with another customer. He was underweight, as was everyone else in this place, and a day old stubble covered his tanned face. I kept looking through the stuff and laughed, remembering the malls back home and how I thought _they_ were bad. When I finally found something I started to reach for my wallet and my face fell. How was I going to get anywhere around here? Tucking the clothing out of sight as well as I could, I continued perusing as I edged myself farther away. I could do this…

"HEY! Mu Gou! Get back here!"

The older man screamed out at me as my feet hit the dirt at a dead run. Weaving through the crowd of people, I watched as men in uniforms started running towards me. They all carried strange weapons, which I thought to be some sort of a gun, and moved stiffly and were too slow. My body was acting rather than reacting to the situation and speed seemed to be an old friend of mine. Getting away was an easier task then I thought would be possible.

Diving into a rusted boat slash ship looking thing, I slacked up against some of the cargo and slid to the floor. I cannot believe I really just did that… A smile spread across my face while I stifled a laugh which threatened to reveal me. I had to change clothes and then I would find out where to go from here.

I looked down at my prized and shook my head. These should not even be considered a prize; it looked like cheap leather and cloth. Well, if it would help me to blend in, I would wear the clothes and deciding this, I quickly slipped into them, grimacing at the rough texture. The pants were a little small as I tugged them on and instantly I craved a pair of faded denim. Pain ripped through my head as I clamped a hand over my mouth in attempts to keep from screaming.

_A young blonde woman laughed as I tried on a pair of leather pants which seemed to be painted on. "I think not in a big kind of way." I laughed in response and ventured back into the dressing room._

Blood dripped from my nose as I sagged against a box. These visions needed to stop. My head spun as my world went black, but just before I lost it completely, I saw him. I saw that horrid loud shirt and smiled.

"Xander…"

I barely had a chance to get his name off of my tongue before I was gone.

* * *

Sorry for the short chapter. Promise more to come.


	7. Chpt 6 Xander

**Xander**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.**

"Subject is a young girl, maybe nineteen to twenty years of age. Approximately one hundred sixty five centimeters and fifty-eight kilograms"

The man's voice drifted in, waking me up. He was a tall, slender man who looked entirely way to young to be a doctor; then again, sixteen was way too young to fight the horrors of… I scrunched my face up in confusion and let loose a groan. Goddess my head hurt.

"Hey there. How are you feeling?"

The doctor came towards me and I screamed, thinking immediately of Doctor Anderson back at the white clinic. "No no no no nonono... NULLUS!" That voice, which was but wasn't mine, rose out of me again, freezing the doctor in place. Slowly, I scrambled to my feet, before funning for the door only to run into my Xander.

"XANDER! Thank the gods!" I threw my arms around his neck and breathed in deeply, praying his scent would bring back fond memories with no blood included, but in the end, nothing came and I did not recognize the voice which spoke to me.

"Not that I do not mind being woman handled by an exceptionally beautiful, young lady, but to my unfortunate benefit, I'm married and my name is not Xander, so if you would kindly remove yourself, we could figure a few things out." Then he carefully removed my arms and held me at arms length to give me a once over. Standing back, I realized that the man standing before me wasn't my Xander but was a man in his mid thirties with dirty blonde hair and that was when the headache started again.

"_Check this out, they put cheese on round bread. It's gonna be big…" He stood there holding a pizza box in my front door and was smiling at me. I was overly excited to see him and couldn't wait to dig into the pizza. He was one of the few who never treated me as though I was a child; he treated me as though I was his very equal. An older woman walked up to us and told me to be good and kissed me goodbye. "Oh, we will. We're just going to play with matches, run with scissors, take candy from… some guy… I don't know his name." Xander responded, to what I could only assume was my mother, while he winked at me._

"Lady, hey!" I was being gently shaken by someone but I did not want to wake up. I tried to cling to Xander with everything I had. I needed him. He was the only thing I could remember even remotely clearly. Why were they pulling me away from him?

"Don't touch me!" I screamed as I flinched away from them. "Please." The last part barely came out as a whimper. The two men moved back away from me and glanced at each other. The doctor wore dark slacks and dark boot like loafers. His tawny vest covered the better portion of a long sleeved white button up shirt and his hair was slicked back. He was kind of cute, in a worn, sophisticated kind of way. The Xander impersonator stood next to him and looked as though he has drank too many energy drinks as he was shifting his weight from foot to foot. How could I have ever thought this man to be my Xander?

"Wash, why don't you go and fetch the captain and see what he thinks we should do with our little stow-away." The doctor suggested and the man who at first had reminded me of Xander, walked out of the small metal room, leaving me alone with the Doctor Anderson wanna be. Great.

"Hello. My name is Simon and I am Serenity's physician. What's your name?" He asked. He seemed okay enough, but that is how the evil gets into your home. It appears as a nice friendly face with sincere intentions to earn your trust before it attempts to devour you alive, or it will get into a name calling contest and you could stupidly call it into your house… I shuddered at the thought, unsure as to why I was shuddering.

"Okay, you don't have to tell me your na-…" he started before he was interrupted by a tall slender girl with dark waves cascading down her back. Her voice was beautiful and soft. "She's broken. Too far from home. Can't think right. Scrambled up like breakfast." The dark headed girl tilted her head slightly to the right and studied me. It felt as if she was seeing straight through me… into my head… "Contego!" I shrieked as I shoved myself as far back as the wall behind me would permit.

The young woman in question, fell to the ground, clutching her head tightly as if she were in some great pain. "RIVER!" Doctor Simon cried out as he rushed to her side, and once they were next to each other, I saw the resemblance. "River, are you alright?" His head snapped up and those once kind eyes turned hard and cold as they pinned me immobile. "What did you do to her?" His concern for his sister was genuine and I instantly felt sorry for whatever I had done. River looked up at me and cocked her head again, before she got to her feet and walked towards me.

"River" Doctor Simon grabbed her arm. "Stop. Please Mei Mei." His eyes gaining that soft charming sincerity once again, but River just brushed him off and continued heading in my direction. "How?" she asked.

We stood there for what seemed hours, but I knew to be but a minute, staring at each other in an awkward silence before I finally spoke. "How what?" I asked not sure what she was referring to and praying it was not the word I had said. I had no idea how I was doing these things and did not know where to begin explaining it.

'Hi, I do not know my name, but the people at this all white clinic I was staying at called me Jessica. I get these urges from deep inside of me to speak a different language I don't know and before I know it, it takes over my body and talks people into flying, turning lights on, and even blocks out nosey little readers from getting inside of my brain. Yep, that's me. Nope, I'm not crazy in the least.' Yeah… that would go over splendidly.

Just then, Wash slash Xander walked back into the room followed by what I assumed to be their captain. A beautiful, tall black Amazon looking woman came in behind him. Her dark curls were pulled back in a partial loose pony tail at the nape of her neck. She was dressed head to toe in leather, even with a small leather thread tied around her neck. I opened my mouth to say something but what came out wasn't me, for I saw Caleb walk in quickly behind her. "Absentis de EGO!" I screamed as he went flying out of the room with a thud. A sharp piercing sensation went into my neck and my vision blurred. "Caleb… evil…"

Then everything went black.


	8. Chpt 7 Mind Reading River

**Mind Reading River**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.**

Gods, was I ever growing tired of the blacking out field trip extravaganza which seemed to be permanently attached to me. This time, however, it had some help from a damn needle. When I finally started to wake, it felt as though a thick sludge had been poured over my entire body. I could move neither my arms nor my legs and as for my mouth, it wasn't functioning either. Annoyance ripped through me as I realized I was gagged and tied down. I hated being tied down, yet it kept happening to me… I think it did anyways…

"You want to tell me why I am taking orders from your crazy sister on _my_ gorram boat? Is she your other crazy sister?" Caleb fumed as I tried to stay silent. "Why should I not throw her out the door right?" Doctor Simon rolled his eyes as if he was accustomed to a temper tantrum from this man.

"'cause she's not crazy, she just doesn't know herself." The young girl I had hurt earlier spoke up, I think her name was River. "She's not really here. She doesn't exist. She doesn't understand." The girl turned and smiled at me. "Scrambled like breakfast."

"All the more reason to have her off my boat! I don't need another crazy aboard and I wont be having anymore mishaps!" Caleb screamed at River and I shrank back with a whimper. River cocked her head to the side and looked confused towards Caleb.

"Captain, are you a priest?" River asked baffled. Caleb's mouth fell open.

Caleb flooded my head. He was standing next to a beautiful blonde woman I know I loved. They were fighting until the scenery changed to the same woman surrounded by a bunch of other girls around the age of sixteen or so. They were standing their ground while visions of thousands of bald creatures came into my view. They held red eyes with wrinkled faces and their teeth… their teeth were jagged and sharp. They were screaming incoherent war cries as they charged us. Fear ripped through me and I let out a scream of my own which was echoed loudly by River's.

A bleached blonde man began to shine in the background. Gripping my head I begged for it to stop, River mimicking me as she cried. They were not like the other flashes I was used to getting; it was like a projection screen playing everywhere I looked to. The images, themselves, were rawer and were haunting as they were terrifying.

Another scene alteration and I was watching a man and a woman fight in a cross hall of my old school. The woman fell to the ground dead, protecting the annoying boy and my heart seized as I saw Xander's face at the news. These people were my family…

River looked to me as the visions faded away to nothing; the pity was evident on her face. "I am so sorry little key. They meant so much and now they've flown away. The bird can no longer sing for you, can it?" She walked towards me, studying me as she came. "Such scrambled breakfast yet perfectly fine to eat, and the belly is rather rumbly isn't it, But not for food. It hurts the head it does. "

It was becoming irritating that this girl could see my memories better than I could. She just plucked them right out of me. It was my head, had I no rights? I should sue. River continued to talk about random things in a British accent, but I was ignoring her, and watched Caleb, who stood there mouth dropped open, waiting for a fly to dare enter him. As I looked him over, I realized his stance was different and he was wearing horrible clothes I would not have even caught people in the seventies wearing, and from what I understand, they wore everything… or nothing… I don't remember which. What was he trying to do? Make a statement before getting arrested by the fashion police?

River continued on her little rant, "No one wants to listen to us Edith, they all turn away, but they will se-…"

"SHUT UP DRU!" I tried to scream through the gag with little success, as she continued on her merry little way. "Little bit ain't strong enough, she must wait for _her_. Button, button, who's got the button… my money's on the witch." The voices from within my head came pouring out of her mouth. Tears pricked my eyes the pain fluttered through my head. Why wouldn't it stop… please, just let it stop… "Fe, Fi, Fo, Fum, I smell the blood of a nice ripe girl." River's eyes turned to me, "I will know your blood, Slayer, I will make your neck my chalice and drink deep." With that, River fell to the floor, Simon barely having enough time to catch her.

Caleb mouth finally shut as he looked from River to me, and back to river. "Huh… Well, that was all kinds of creepy.


	9. Chpt 8 Mal: the SemiEvil AntiPriest

**Mal: The Semi-Evil Anti-Priest**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however, give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse and gave me something to write about.**

I stared, mouth agape at River as, who I assumed was her brother, carefully carried her then laid her on a table next to mine, which set against the far wall. That small girl spoke words which sent chills racing down my spine. I had no idea what they meant, but it was terrifying how much fear it struck in me. And what was all that nonsense about a slayer and a neck chalice. I knew she was grabbing it all out of my head, but that only frightened me more.

Caleb moved, attracting my attention and was walking towards me very cautiously. It amazed me that he could be the captain of the… oh god, I was in a spacship. A _real_ spaceship. Maybe this was a dream or I was poisoned and am now hallucinating. I tried to remember what I had eaten last, only to find I could not remember and it had been a day's time at least since something had filled my stomach.

"Now I'm going t'remove that there gag and when I do, I dont want any hollerin or strange words comin out of your mouth you hear me?" His eyes were well trained on my face, waiting for my response.

After a long pause, I hesitantly nodded my head, but I flinched the moment he touched my face to pull the gag out of my mouth. I worked my jaw, happy for the damn thing to be out. The back of my throat was raw, partially, I assume, from the tranquilizer they used on me and then there was the gag. As if reading my thoughts, Caleb asked for the good doctor to fetch me some water.

I drank greedily from the cup they had given me until there was not so much as a drop left, and then, to my surprise, I received another glass which I took my time drinking.

Caleb watched me curiously before deciding to speak. "Now, you wanna be telling me why you stole away on my ship?" His voice was softer than I remember, but still I had another dose of chills visiting my spine. I kept my mouth shut, afraid if opened it, more of those words would come out and another needle would end up in my neck. None of that seemed to work out for either party.

Getting a closer look at him, I saw I was right on the clothes being ugly part. He had cream pants, which were entirely too tight, and a loose fitting belt that held a holster, which in turn, held his gun. If it wasn't for the holster, the belt looked like a bad attempt at a fashion accessory the girls back home used to wear. He was also wearing a ruddy brown button up shirt and matching cream suspenders to hold up his pants; not that he needed them, like I said, the pants were tight.

"You best get to answerin my questions less you want me to open the hatch with you on the outside." He was getting agitated and part of me bucked against it. I wanted to attack him, but instead I shrank back.

"Captain, perhaps I might try." Doctor Simon commented firmly yet politely, "You seem to be frightening her. Why don't you wait outside and let me talk to her." He waited for Caleb to make his decision while trying to hide a small smirk from his captain.

Caleb grunted and said something in that language everyone kept yelling in as he turned and walked out of the infirmary. The doctor then turned to face me and smiled kindly. Somehow, I think I was safer with the priest; at least I knew his intentions.

"Hello. Remember me?" He asked pulling up a chair to set next to me.

"You're the one who stuck me with that needle." I muttered.

Wincing, Doctor Simon looked sheepish. "Sorry about that. I was only trying to protect everyone from any further harm. Now, how about that name? I'm Simon."

"You already said your name and that you were some chick's doctor." I replied, ever eager to go anywhere but here.

Doctor Simon chuckled, "So you do remember. I am the ship's physician. You are doing a very swell job of avoiding answering my questions. Why don't you talk to me? I cannot help your situation if you do not talk to me."

I rolled my eyes. How many times had I heard that line? …actually that was a good question. Heh. "What makes you think you can help 'my situation'?"

"Are you hungry?" He asked, switching the subject quickly. Although I tried to look bored and uninterested, my stomach gave me away. He grinned again. "I'll be right back." He stood went to the door and spoke with someone outside of it before coming back in to talk to me. "Food is on the way I hope you like bland flavor because that is all we have-… see and I still do not have your name." He glanced over at River with a pained look on his face. "That's River. She is my little sister." Some of the pain eased as he said that last part. "She's very special."

"I d-don't know." I stuttered, barely audible.

"I'm sorry?" he looked up confused. "You don't know what?"

"My name. _They_ called me Jessica, but that isn't my name." I was looking intently at the small blanket which covered me; counting the stitches.

"Well that is a start. We'll call you Jessica for now until we find out your real name. Now, why do you hate the captain so?" His concern and curiosity was mixed on his face.

"He's evil." I said bluntly. A laugh rose out of the doctor as he tried to catch his breath. "It's true! He killed friends of mine! His hair was longer then, not by much, and he was dressed as a priest." This only seemed to make it harder for the doctor to remain in control.

"Mal may be hanging off the back of the good wagon, but he is most definitely not evil and is in no form a priest of _any_ religion. Perhaps you have mistaken him for someone else." The doctor smiled good naturedly. "or the universe has a wicked sense of humor and decided to make and evil twin of Mal…" he trailed of in his thoughts.

"So you're saying _Mal_ isn't my _Caleb_ and that _Mal_ is a semi-evil anti-priest kind of guy?" I asked trying to process things. None of this makes any kinds of sense.


	10. Chpt 9 Can't Trust Crazy

**DISCLAIMER: I do not now, nor have I ever held any form of ownership over any of**

**said characters. They all have rightful owners, none of which are me. I do, however,**

**give an enormous amount of gratitude for those who created such a beautiful 'verse**

**and gave me something to write about.**

They are discussing me out there while I sit and wait for whatever is to come. The doctor had left me even more confused than I have been at the beginning of this little, messed up adventure. Apparently it was the year of 2519, and we where, in fact in a space ship; a REAL spaceship in actual OUTER SPACE. Caleb, or rather Mal, is completely human and has never been a priest and is the Captain of this space ship. The guy wearing the Hawaiian shirt was the pilot and was apparently married to the beautiful black woman I saw earlier who is actually the captain's right hand. There is a few more members of the crew but he didn't go over them much: A priest (non evil he assured me), a merc (money hungry pervert), a companion (whatever the hell that is), and a mechanic. There is really nothing left of my world that I can barely remember.

After our little 'talk', the doc left to speak with his friends. If there is one thing I do remember, it is always better to go by yourself into the unknown with a big stake then to stay with a group of people hankering for a lynching and your neck looking ripe for the picking... stake? I meant stick. Where can I find a big stick? Surely they have to have something I can use as a weapon. Sadly, I don't find much as I search the room, maybe a couple of syringes, but not of real use. Stupid clean space, oh how I loathe you.

I freeze as the crazy girl gets up and stretches. Not once does she glance in my direction as she walks past me, opens the door to the infirmary and walks out leaving the door wide open. I follow, trying to keep a decent distance so she wouldn't notice me. We went down a hall and into a large cargo-like area. Hiding behind some boxes, I watch while River climbs a small flight of stairs and ducks into a large room. Silently, I follow while trying to make sure no one spotted me in the openness. The room looked to be like a large dining room with a decent ceiling height and the crew was sitting around the table discussing me.

"Semi-evil anti what?" Mal/Caleb fumed as he he stood and paced back and forth grasping his gun from time to time. "That girl in there is 10 kinds of crazy and I have more than enough crazy on my gorram ship!"

I glare at Mal/Caleb for his words. I may not remember much but I am certainly not '10 kinds of crazy'.

"Dear God! We're all going to die! Reaver kind of crazy?" Wash not Xander asked, waving his arms around dramatically. "or geese juggling crazy? Because I could handle the geese thing; People have been known to do the geese thing."

"Do you think there is a re-ward?" An angry, scruffy looking man, I assume is the mercenary, asked. "I mean if we can't claim one crazy girlie, might as well snag the other, right?"

Snag? They think they can just cash me in? They are in for a rude awakening. This will not end prettily. I am a slayer and a witch... I'm a what? I grab my head as a piercing whine shot throughout it. Blood trickled down my lip from my nose, but i tried to steady myself to hear some more.

"It's not that simple; she doesn't even know who she is. What if she's in trouble? What if she's like us?" Simon, the doctor, attempted to appeal to his comrades. "She's obviously in need of our help, we cannot just leave her; it isn't right."

"SHE ain't right! And where does it say it's my job to help every crazy that finds it's way onto my ship? I think I've done enough!" Mal countered angrily, "Give me one good reason I should even bother."

"Well, you see, it seems she was abducted and has was experimented on possibly just as River was. What if she's just like River? I could do a few tests myself and it could help reveal so much about how to fix River and possibly her as well. This could be a great oppurtunity that has just fallen into our laps." Simon pleaded at the group of misfits before him. "She could be useful as well if we help her. You have seen what she can do."

"I have seen, which is exactly why I'm saying there ain't no goram way she's staying on my ship! She thinks I'm some evil priest who killed all sorts of people, mutters noise and hurts people herself and to top all of it off, she found an off switch on yer sister in there..." Mal paused for a moment considering what he had just said. "I ain't sure if that's a good thing or not." Mal looks to Simon. "Does that seem good to you?"

I could see the hesitation on Simon's face as he contemplated whether or not I would be a threat to him and his crew. I stayed crouched in the entrance, waiting for his answer, unsure why it even mattered. They were talking about strapping me down on a bed and doing experiments on me just as Doc Anderson had been doing, or they were talking about turning me over for money or just killing me. How about none of the above? Flashes of a military base, underground, creatures behind clear cages... Wincing, I tried harder to focus on the conversation before me.

"She's all alone in that crowded head of hers. So many whispers screaming to be let out and not one she can hear." River commented nonchalantly, playing with a piece of her long, dark hair. "So much death, so much know how, so much unknown. Little sis is coming, I know."

Little sis? Buf-... no... I don't have a family... do I? I fall on my butt, startled with Mal/Caleb's response. Brushing the blonde out of my face, I try with the focusing again.

"See, Crazy! She's already claimin' the girl as her little sister! With that kind of influence we are bound for destruction!" Mal/Caleb's voice was full of anger and red was creeping down his neck. "I'm the captain and I want her off my boat!"

"You're not being fair, Mal." A Beautiful woman walked forward. Her purple, strappy dress was the first piece of non ugly apparel I have seen yet. I want to go shop where she did. Maybe they would have denim... "She has hardly done anything wrong"

"Hardly? Wrong? She blew me across the room with just a word or three!" He gasped.

"I would have done the same if I had thought you were there to hurt me. I would do it right now if had the ability!" This woman looked almost out of place raising her voice. The pilot was looking away trying to hide his laughter behind his amazon of a wife, who looked rather amused herself. "At least let her get healed up before dropping her somewhere off planet."

"She's crazy and you can't trust crazy!" He screamed at the woman.

"You're crazy, Mal, and we all trust you most of the time." She replied softly.

"You're just proving my point." He scoffed.

A noise behind me had me to my feet and spun around. Before I could stop it, the words flew from my mouth. "Confuto." The girl froze, hand to throat. "Now, back up slowly and get me to your room." The girl looked frightened but turned and walked in a different direction. I followed her down a hall, trying to not be distracted by the architecture of the 'space ship', and down into her room. It was a small little hole with a bunch of bright fabric and tools everywhere. I had just found their mechanic. "Now, I am going to give you your voice back so long as you promise not to yell. Do we have an agreement?" She nodded her head and a twinge of guilt went through me. The poor girl looked as though she didn't have a violent bone in her body. "Narro"

"How did you do that?!" She asked quietly, rubbing her throat. "Who are you? What do you want?"

"Apparently, I'm crazy."


End file.
